Faithful & True

“I am his Highness dog at Kew; pray tell me, sir, whose dog are you?’ is a wonderful, descriptive quote from Alexander Pope, poet, and really sums up dogs of all pedigrees, genre’s and attitudes. It is just one of the many wonderful quotes to grace the pages of this carefully selected and created testament to our furry, four footed friend, the dog!

The photographs have been carefully selected from the collection of Mary Evans, the woman behind the creation of the Mary Evans Picture Library in 1962. An avid collector, she built up such an intensive collection that her Library has been supplying images to industries such as publishing, media, and design for the past five decades, to be used for a wide variety of purposes.

Each of the pictures in this delightful and heart-warming collection date from the late 19th century and are representative of the years when dogs were considered to be an essential member of every family.

They are also a wonderful window on a time when society’s rules were so very different to today. People have always related to their dogs, considering them as family members. Should a family portrait be considered, the dog was and still is an integral member of the group. Including your beloved family pet in the picture adds that certain ‘something’, that illusive essence, to the shot.

Dogs do tend to bring out the best in us; they offer unconditional love, are not fussy about how you look and can always be counted upon to cheer you up in moments of distress and sadness. Somehow they just seem to know what is needed and when to deliver that large sloppy lick.

Each of the pictures that grace these pages has a lovely, often wry or witty, and occasionally, a very telling quote from someone wise or famous that compliments the photo, adding that something special to a treasury which will be dipped into time and time again.

The final perfectly fitting words go to Ambrose Bierce, journalist and short story writer, which sums the entire ‘dog thing’ up perfectly;

‘Dog. A kind of additional or subsidiary Deity designed to catch the overflow and surplus of the world’s worship.’